Tendlepog
Tendlepog Tendlepog is the eastern cog in the Swahhitteh-Tendlepog continent cluster. It spins counter clockwise south to north at a rate of about one rotation per 2 and a half years. Just like its western twin, it is shrouded in an illusion, making spotting it in the distance difficult. The God of Sleep, K'nell, is attributed with Tendlepog's creation and houses many of his creations on its surface, including the Guardian Nightmares, The Warden and his gateway, Limbo. It is also the birthplace of the Dreamer race, including its progenitor, Hermes. The Hero Arya and the Avatar Xiaoli have also spent time on Tendlepog, seeing it as a home. It has suffered one invasion at the hands of Vakk, but was repelled by the combined efforts of Eurysthenes, K'nell, and Shengshi, resulting in Vakk's body being destroyed. Geology Tendlepog is notable in that it is a rotating continent and because of this, has a very unique and intricate geological history. The actual shelf of Tendlepog stretches at a near 90 degree angle from the ocean, making a beaching shore impossible without manual alterations. This is a result of the cog motion of the continent itself, where it's many "teeth" interlock with the teeth of Swahhitteh, forming nearly perfect bonds for a select time, far above the ocean waves. Great amounts of stone dust is created through this locking motion, giving the tops of the sheer cliffs of the twin continents shores the facade of a sandy beach, despite the drop to the ocean below. In regards to plate mechanics, Tendlepog and Swahhiteh are separate rocky plates floating on the mantle of Galbar hence their grinding motion and clockwise-counterclockwise relationship. This of course causes a lot of volcanic activity far below the ocean near the grinding point. It should be noted, that the seal between the plate of Tendlepog and the oceanic plate is very meticulously placed to prevent anything beyond hot geysers, although the creation of allophane due to violent tremors is not unheard of. The surface of Tendlepog is rich with fine micas and other young clays such as vermiculite and kaolinite, depending on the region. This broad sweep of 2:1 clays allows for a robust vegetation in some areas, but in other areas, particularly those dominated by the dust of the sea shelves, are rather sparse. A unique aspect of Tendlepog is its moving mountains, entire rocky protrusions that grind across the landscape. This causes a good amount of stone dust, but in particular a granite dust which proves to be a great supplier of potassium to the plains regions, enriching local wild flora. Geography and Ecology The majority of Tendlepog can be broken into five major regions, with variables depending on the distance from the center of the continent. These five are the flatlands or sweet grass plains, the cliffside beaches, the moving mountains, the dustlands or deserts, and the forested region that dominates the center of the continent. The Beaches Walking inward from the sea, the first encounter is the cliffside beaches; salty and sandy environments with an array of hardy plants and coupling critters, such as wild cabbage, bitter peas and even some forests. It should be noted that here, as well as in the dustlands, footprints do not form where they logically should, but form elsewhere at a random angle; this could be a few feet away, or on the other side of the continent. Every two and a half years, the beaches of a "tooth" will connect with a tooth from Swahhitteh, forming an impromptu dustland and destroying anything protruding from the cliff's crease. This makes permanent seaside docks difficult to build, and docking a risk. The Dustlands Situated between the beaches and the mountain ranges, is the Dustlands and while it does have some vegetation similar to the beaches, the lack of reliable ground water makes it very dry. Only now and again will a river escape one of the moving mountains and wash over the dusty area. Fortunately, this strip of land is the smallest ecotone on Tendlepog and only encompasses as a thin ring around the continent. It's harsh nature is born via the floating particulates from the sea shelves that collect at the base of the mountainous border, coupled with the lack of proper hydration. The Sweet Grass Plains Also known as the flatlands, dominates most of Tendlepog and is sandwiched between the outer ring of mountains (that border the Dustlands) and the inner ring (that border the Forests of Limbo). Occasionally a stray mountain will migrate through, causing destruction to whatever is in its path. The plains are named after its primary organism, the Sweet Grass, a ruby red grass that emits a sweet aroma and a sugary taste. It is the stable for a lot of the fauna that call the plains home, including bilbies and grazing wild horses. While rivers do cut through the plains, a lot of organisms rely on the stampeding trees and the pot holes their roots dig to survive. Cloudlings, a species of cotton-ball sized clouds, utilize these pools for hydration, and the white flowers of the translucent tripvine, for sugar. Tree-Eaters are considered the largest predatory animal on Tendlepog, their diet specialized to only accept the wood of the stampeding trees. The Mushroom Mountains The Forests of Limbo = Notable Locations Limbo The Mortal Estate The Stone in the Plains Notable Inhabitants Dreamers The current and only dreamer present on Tendlepog (and on Galbar) is Hermes. Dreamers are noted for their swirl mark on their foreheads, unique and colorful birthmarks and tendency to average around ten hours of sleep per 24 hours. The Warden The Warden was created by K'nell with the specific purpose of carrying out and ensuring the following of K'nell's will (effectively making him the commander of the guardian nightmares). It wasn't explicitly specified, but assumed this is meant to be contained to the Swahhitteh-Tendlepog cluster. The Warden was born at the same time as the Guardian Nightmares, in a show of horrific power by the God of Sleep. He was described as a man atop a midnight black mare, his body completely encased a dark thorny armor,, all except for fiery eyes. In tandem with the theme of fire, the mare was seen galloping on fire during his counter-charge against Vakk's echo army during the invasion of Tendlepog. He has been known to use a sword in the defense of Tendlepog against the ethereal echoes, but his purpose is not defined by that action. The Warden is a nightmare and possesses the ability of one, if not at a much greater magnitude than normal. He has the ability to determine a mortal creature's intention even before an act can be made, and uses this knowledge to ensure that all creatures directly opposing K'nell's will be removed from Tendelpog or destroyed. This act is carried out usually in surprise, with the mare whinnying to give away the impending attack. The Warden rides swiftly into his target, effectively disappearing along with the mare as the victim is forced to sleep. The victim is barraged with horrific and anxious nightmares at such a high frequency, if the victim doesn't have the mental capacity to fend off The Warden, cardiac arrest and other stress related injuries can occur, killing the victim. The Guardian Nightmares Tree-Eaters Stampeding Trees Cloudlings Cloudlings are a cotton-ball sized creature made entirely of clouds. They are highly social and vocal, communicating with small pops of electricity. They have a very loose colonial structure, with no clear matriarch or structure besides swarming. Should a large enough swarm gather and be irritated, they could form a phenomena called a stormling which is in essence, a giant electricity storm. They favor sugar above all else, being attracted to anything remotely sugary, or liquid. Their bodies are unique in that, they do not experience osmosis in the presence of fats or salts, but rather suck up both. Another unique and possibly magical variable about their bodies is its ability to have pollen cling to it. One famous cloudling is Poppler, as named by Hermes -- with another being Dumpling as named by Hermes' daughter, Altansarnai.